stevierussell Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Perusing eBay as I do from time to time, I found this: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/EPIPHONE-DOT-GIBSON-335-USA-BIGSBY-B7-VIBRATO-/320700163706?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item4aab38267a#ht_710wt_1139 so a few cosmetic upgrades, no changes to the business end, pick ups etc. But this is the bit that made me laugh: "This guitar really looks the part and even the headstock has been ‘disguised’ with a Gibson headstock sticker (easily removable). Only the headstock shape and tuners give away the fact that this is really a very playable Epiphone Dot" I mean why? anything wrong with Epi? not from my perspective, I think my Dot is a work of art. Snobbery and no need for it Rant over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Moore Tribute Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I mean why? anything wrong with Epi? not from my perspective, I think my Dot is a work of art. Snobbery and no need for it Rant over Agreed My "Gibson Custom" is almost finished but even with FREE Gibson headstock decals thrown my way when I bought some custom decals for my hardcase & scratchplate I never felt the temptation to hide what it really was. Also the logo is OFF to the left so its wrong anyway... you can also see the patch job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkuss Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 A bit random but a really nice guitar. Especially with the Bigsby. I've had this in my watch list since it was first listed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevierussell Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 i do agree with that - it is a nice guitar - apart from the naff sticker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I must be a "reverse snob," as I have taken off, TRC's with "Gibson" on them, on some of my Epi's. And replaced them, with the "E" version, or a plain one. Nothing wrong with (most) Epiphones, especially these days... "Chinese" or not! A good/great player, can make them sound every bit as good, as any other "brand." ;>) CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersonic Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I think it's completely ridiculous for some one to try to "disguise" an Epi as a Gibson. Epi makes damn good guitars and there's no reason to try and make them appear to be something they are not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragoro Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Considering Josh Homme plays en epi dot, I cant understand why someone would want to hide the fact that it's an epiphone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Just seems a little silly to me. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Small things amuse small minds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midiman56 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 It's pecker-heads like this guy that keep the Chinese fake-makers in business! Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gypsyseven Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 To be honest, i love the fact (if) it´s an Epiphone.Even on my Tokai LS95, which is more of a ´59 Les Paul than most Gibson guitars, i love the fact that there´s no "G" logo on the headstock... Especially on that Epi Dot is a "G" logo wrong.It´s not the right headstock shape for that....whatever... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevierussell Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 It's pecker-heads like this guy that keep the Chinese fake-makers in business! Jim a very good point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Does a guitarist have more self-esteem because of the name on the headstock? Does a mediocre guitarist think he/she is better because of the name on the headstock? Does a good guitarist think he/she deserves the luxury model? When I was playing my ES-330/Casino, I left the Gibson at home and took the Casino to the gig. When I decided that the weekly outdoor gig by a salt water lagoon was probably not the best thing for a hollow body guitar, I brought a bottom-feeder LTD EC-50 to the gig (I put new pickups in it so it sounded great). Now I bring my Parker DF to the gig, because it's the best guitar I've ever played. It's light, versatile, sounds great and has a touch-and-go neck/action. But I don't care one bit what is on the headstock. I played the LTD or Epiphone as proudly as the Gibson or Parker. Really, it's only other musicians who know the difference. The audience doesn't care what's on the headstock, only what is coming out of the speakers. And if another musician comes in and judges my playing by the name on the guitar, his/her opinion is of no value to me. In fact, the audience would probably rate the guitar with their eyes more by looks than brand name. I suspect that if you played either one of those B.C.Rich pointy things or an uber-blinged Tony Zemaitis axe on a country gig or a cheap old Danelectro Longhorn the audience would respond more to the Dano You can play for yourself ... you can play for other musicians ... or you can play for the general public. In either case, if you are good enough, you will get the audience you asked for. I've always asked for the general public, and they have never let me down. Insights and incites by Notes ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Summerisle Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Does a guitarist have more self-esteem because of the name on the headstock? Does a mediocre guitarist think he/she is better because of the name on the headstock? Does a good guitarist think he/she deserves the luxury model? In the late '90s I was sharing a flat in London with a couple of other guys. One of them was a law graduate working for one of the big investment/securities firms. He decided that he'd like to take up cycling, both recreationally and for transportation (having never been on a bike since he was a kid, at that point in time). Fair enough. But he didn't just walk over to the nearest bike store and buy a decent new Raleigh road-bike for a few hundred quid. He went to a custom bike designer and ordered some carbon-fibre, state-of-the-art machine for about three grand. Which then spent most of its time leaning against the wall in our kitchen. If this guy had been interested in getting into guitar as opposed to getting into cycling, I guarantee that he'd have bought a Les Paul Custom or Custom Shop Fender to learn on. Which, at the end of the day, would be his right. There's no law against stupidity. Guitars, ultimately, are a luxury item. Some people will buy in accordance with their place on the capitalist totem-pole. You're also dealing with a highly image-conscious industry. Gibson is in a different place to some other manufacturers, in this regard. A guy can buy an Ibanez for a few hundred dollars and pretend he's Steve Vai (if that's what he wants). It looks like an Ibby, plays like an Ibby, and says, "Ibanez" on the headstock. Splendid. The guy on a budget who wants to pretend to be Slash has a problem, however - his LP looks like a Gibson, plays like a Gibson, and says, "Epiphone" on headstock. Bummer. Slash didn't play no Epi. To some insecure people, this is always going to be a problem. Others (serious musicians, and those people who aspire to be better musicians), will choose more carefully - selecting gear that suits them as, well, musicians. I love my $700 Hagstrom Viking. (To me) it is a total delight to play. And it gets admiring looks in the coffee-shop gigs I play. Its tone is all I want from a guitar. As a guitarist of intermediate skill, I couldn't get the best out of a $3000 ES-335 anyway, so what's the point in having one? Even if my playing does rapidly advance, and I mysteriously become a complete virtuoso in my mid-30s, (a highly unlikely learning curve, given that I've already been playing nearly 20 years), would advancing to a "professional" grade instrument be a mandatory part of that development? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkuss Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I got into Epiphones because I'm a Beatles fan and my first proper electric was an Epiphone Casino. I also really like the 60s models and reissues like the Riviera, Sorrento, Wilshire, Crestwood, Coronet, Olympic etc. I've loved the majority of Epiphones that I've owned and still enjoy playing the ones I've got. I just bought a Riviera yesterday. I've owned Les Pauls, Dots, Specials, Juniors and even though I liked them and had no hang ups playing them in public there are some models, for me anyway, that just don't look as aesthetically pleasing as their Gibson counterpart. Saying that, I would prefer to have an Elite Les Paul standard over a Gibson LP Studio or Faded because it's a better guitar but in terms of looks I think the Gibson headstock looks more "right" so I can understand why some people go to great lengths to modify their Epis or other copies to resemble a Gibson. However, putting a shoddy sticker over it is just daft in my opinion. The other mods are all great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomeagle1 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Ultimately it's about the music you play. No matter what you name it. I've never seen anything in the music notation about "This must be played on a Gibson/Fender/Martin/Taylor............ Still " Searching for the Sound...." Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matiac Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Let the music do the talkin'... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I wonder if people ever re-badge their cars? For instance, have you ever seen anyone add Mercury badges to a similar model Ford? Maybe there's less perceived difference in prestige between the auto-makers various step-up brands/marques. Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matiac Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I dunno about re-badging a car, but someone around here a few years back took a 1968 Pontiac Firebird nose, and put it on a 1968 Chevy Camaro convertible body for a totally unique car. But what used to be Plymouth Voyagers have been re-badged by Chrysler as Chrysler Voyagers so yes, I guess I have seen one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toopicky Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I wonder if people ever re-badge their cars? For instance, have you ever seen anyone add Mercury badges to a similar model Ford? Maybe there's less perceived difference in prestige between the auto-makers various step-up brands/marques. Red 333 Yes, they do. Maybe not change the brand name of the car, but try to disguise the car as a more popular model. The ones that come to mind right away are the Pontiac GTO's. There used to be a lot of fake ones out there. Some were so good that a person could easily be taken if they didn't know what they were looking at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I think it's a stupid idea to one brand's logo (sticker or nay) over the original brand's logo. That said, I do give the seller credit for at least making this deception obvious in his description, no one can say they weren't forewarned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antwhi2001 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I think you can take it too seriously. I've done it myself, and may well do it again. This is one of mine : It's just a bit of fun, not trying to fool anyone. If I wanted to do that I'd reshape the headstock and lower the tuners. "Epiphone" make and sell Gibson Les Paul copies, for people who can't / won't pay Gibson prices. I'm lucky, I can afford Gibsons now but I still play Epiphones and always will...I'm planning to buy another soon. Whether you call them "Epiphone by Gibson" or "Gibson by Epiphone" doesn't matter to me. I used to gig with that bullion gold Samick LP, and more than once someone complimented me on my great-sounding Gibson. I took great delight in telling them that it was actually an Epiphone bought for £150. I regret selling that one. If I fall on hard times I'm going to sell the Gibsons and play Epis, with no regrets. That Dot is just a bad job, and a mistake. Trying to sell an Epi or any other non-Gibson guitar as a Gibson is a criminal offence, and rightly so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I name all my guitars after women I've known...( 60 or so guitars )... I don't dare put their actual names on the geetars......They'll demand to own them.... :blink: .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkuss Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I name all my guitars after women I've known...( 60 or so guitars )... I don't dare put their actual names on the geetars......They'll demand to own them.... :blink: .... Two of my guitars are named after women! My first Casino is called Eleanor and my Hofner Congress is called Jefner after the girl who bought it for me. I am planning on getting the headstock on my EJ-160e reshaped and done like a Gibson and the body painted like Lennon's psych guitar but not planning on doing that until I have a real Beatles Spec J-160e. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 <...>Guitars, ultimately, are a luxury item. <...> For me, they are tools. But then I am in the minority that plays music to make my living. And personally I don't care how much my guitar costs, or how much 'snob appeal' it has. To me the guitar must sound good and feel good under my hands. BTW, I played a Viking in a music store, and it seemed like a very fine guitar. I like my Epiphone Casino as much as I like my Gibson ES-330. They both have their pros and cons when comparing them. The Gibson has higher fret access and sounds better unplugged. The Casino has aftermarket pickups and sounds better plugged in. Plus I like the poly finish on the neck better. But since I got my Parker, I hardly play either one so I'm toying with the idea of selling one. Which one should I sell? If I quit flip-flopping about selling one, I'll put the Gibson up for sale. Why? I can get a lot more money for the Gibson and get two more Parker DF guitars with different pickup configurations. I decided I like the longer scale on the Parker, so I do all my practicing on it. I find if I practice on the Gibson or Epi with the shorter scale and narrower bridge, when I go back to the Parker on the gig, I have to look at the guitar more to keep from putting my fingers in the wrong place (right place for the Gibson). I bring the Parker to the gig because (1) it's light and comfortable against my body (2) I like the master volume near my picking hand (3) it stays in tune better - even with the whammy bar (4) it plays like a dream - ebony fretboard and hardened stainless steel frets (5) it has a wider variety of great sounds. But everybody has their own preferences. That's why they make Chocolate and Vanilla ice cream (my favorite is pistachio). Notes ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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